President Volodymyr Zelensky announced at the United Nations General Assembly that Ukraine has transferred two North Korean soldiers, captured while fighting for Russia, to South Korea.
South Korea has not publicly confirmed the transfer, citing concerns about the safety of the individuals and the details of the consultations between the two countries.
The soldiers were seized by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region in January last year. Zelensky noted that one of the men tried to kill himself when he realized he would be taken prisoner.
The two men are part of a larger North Korean deployment to Russia, with estimates of 14,000 to 15,000 troops sent since 2024, most stationed in Kursk. South Korea’s National Intelligence Service estimated that about 6,000 North Korean soldiers had been killed or wounded.
South Korea has said it would accept North Korean prisoners wishing to resettle, and the soldiers have reportedly expressed a desire to defect. President Lee Jae Myung and Zelensky discussed the issue during a July meeting at the NATO summit in Ankara, agreeing that the soldiers’ wishes should be respected.
Earlier this month, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un praised troops involved in overseas operations, while Zelensky criticised the deployment, questioning why Koreans were sent to fight in a war outside their country. The expanding military partnership between Russia and North Korea has raised concerns about potential Russian assistance to Pyongyang’s military programmes.
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